The present invention relates generally to the field of voicemail message management and, more particularly, to systems and methods for notifying an instant messaging client of messages received at a voicemail server.
Most, if not all, telephone users have at least one voice mailbox in which callers can leave voice messages when the users are unavailable to answer calls. Voicemails are typically retrieved by the users in a number of ways. For example, using a telephone set in her office, a voicemail user who returns from a lunch break can hear voicemails that were left at her voice mailbox while she was at lunch. Alternatively, the voicemail user could remotely dial in (e.g., from her home or while she is out of town) to her voice mailbox to retrieve the voicemail messages. Regardless of the method used, the voicemail user must first access her voicemail server to determine whether or not a new message has been stored in her voice mailbox since the last time she checked the mailbox. This can be inconvenient to the user.
Accordingly, there is a need for a system and method that would notify the user instantaneously when a voicemail has arrived at her voice mailbox.
The present invention is a system and method that provides enhanced notification of messages received by a voicemail server using instant messaging. In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides an enhanced notification server that works with a voicemail server and an instant messaging presence server to notify an instant messaging client of messages received at the voicemail server. When a new message, e.g., a voicemail, a fax message, or the like, intended for a subscriber of a voice mailbox is received, the voicemail server sends a notification to the enhanced notification server. The enhanced notification server then queries the instant messaging presence server to determine whether the voice mailbox subscriber (who is also the instant messaging client) is available. xe2x80x9cAvailablexe2x80x9d means the instant messaging client is online, engaged in an instant messaging session, or otherwise logged on to the instant messaging presence server. If the instant messaging client is available, the enhanced notification server forwards the notification to the instant messaging client. Preferably, forwarding of the notification to the instant messaging client (the voice mailbox subscriber) is accomplished via the instant messaging presence server. The enhanced notification server queues the notification for a later delivery if the instant messaging client is not available.
In another preferred embodiment, the invention provides a method for notifying an instant messaging client of messages received by a voicemail server of which the instant messaging client is a voice mailbox subscriber. The methods include the following steps. First, when the voicemail server receives a message, e.g., a voicemail, a fax message, and the like, which is intended for the instant messaging client, the voicemail server sends a notification to an enhanced notification server. The notification indicates that a new message is available on the voicemail server for retrieval. The enhanced notification server then queries an instant messaging presence server whether the instant messaging client is available. If the voice mailbox subscriber (who is also the instant messaging client) is available, the enhanced notification server forwards the notification to the instant messaging presence server, which in turns forwards the notification to the instant messaging client using known instant messaging technologies.
In other embodiments, the invention can be adapted to forward the incoming message to the voice mailbox subscriber via instant messaging.